New £20m Boeing factory set to open in Sheffield

Aerospace giant Boeing is landing in Sheffield with a £20 million deal to build its first factory in Europe.

Boeing Sheffield will make hi-tech components for aircraft in a plant beside the Parkway next to the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre at Waverley, on the Sheffield-Rotherham border.

The deal is a huge coup for the city and a boost to its reputation for advanced manufacturing.

It comes just weeks after supercar company McLaren announced plans for a £50m factory and 200 jobs in the area.

Sir Michael Arthur, president of Boeing Europe, said: “We are proud to expand our relationship with the UK still further with Boeing Sheffield.

“Our decision to start manufacturing high-value components in the UK is a step-change in our engagement and a further example of Boeing’s commitment to grow here, supporting the UK’s long-term prosperity.”

The company was a founding partner of the AMRC, part of the University of Sheffield, in 2001.

It has attracted scores of hi-tech firms including Rolls-Royce, and now McLaren, to the area.

Prof Keith Ridgway CBE, executive dean of the AMRC with Boeing, said: “This announcement is the culmination of a successful relationship and reinforces that our region is a leading location for high-value advanced manufacturing.”